1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a saw for cutting hard materials, such as concrete, stone, metal, etc., while applying liquid to the cut and, in particular, to a slurry recovery system for a wet cutting saw which collects a slurry combination of the liquid plus fines created while cutting the material.
2. Background of the Invention
In the past, conventional concrete saws have utilized a "wet cutting" operation in which a liquid, such as water, is applied to the cut to cool the saw blade, clean the teeth on the blade and to flush cuttings out the cut. Consequently, a bi-product of a wet cutting operation is a heavy, messy slurry mixture of the liquid and the fine particles created by the saw while cutting the concrete.
However, conventional systems do not properly and efficiently dispose of this bi-product. In most conventional system, the slurry was simply washed into storm drains at the construction site, thereby creating a dirty, and potentially slippery, work area. The slurry also plugged drains and fouled the environment.
Conventional systems have been proposed which attempt to recovery the slurry, such as the "BASSE (vacuum type) series" of Diamond Giken Co., Ltd. The BASSE system includes a bellows setup which surrounds the cutting blade. The recovered slurry is passed through a separation system and pumped away.